Blog

Aug 22

A ‘New’ Pyramid Unearthed

Even after thousands of years, excavation teams are still making incredible discoveries in Egypt. Most recently, a team 25 miles south of Cairo has discovered the remains of a pyramid that dates back to the 13th dynasty — about 3,700 years ago. Ten lines of hieroglyphics, in excellent condition, were among the findings.

The “new” pyramid, which is still being excavated, is located north of king Sneferu’s bent pyramid in the Dahshur royal necropolis, and it’s not as old as other pyramids in the area. Sneferu’s son and successor, King Khufu, built the famous pyramids at Giza.

While the pyramid-shaped upper section is gone, the substructure still remains. Adel Okasha, head of the Dahshur necropolis, said that the newly discovered remains could belong to the Bent pyramid, which is believed to have been ancient Egypt’s first attempt to build a smooth-sided pyramid.

The general manager of the Egyptian Ministry for Antiquities, Essmat Sonay, celebrated the discovery by posting photos to social media. Though experts are not sure who the pyramid officially belonged to — king Ameny Qemau’s name was mentioned in the discovered hieroglyphics, though his pyramid was discovered in 1957 — the Ministry for Antiquities plans to continue excavations and hopes to find more evidence.